Arsenal: Roy Keane has Jack Wilshere all wrong

Roy Keane labelled Jack Wilshere as the ‘most overrated player on the planet’ after Arsenal’s 2-1 loss to FK Ostersunds. He’s got it all wrong.

Many of Arsenal’s players draw a wide array of opinions.

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I think, because of the general style that Arsene Wenger tends to employ, one that can both accentuate the wonderful talents of its players at one point and then painfully expose their shortcomings the very next, there are many positions in which the individuals both flounder and flourish. And thus, our opinions are formed based on the memory of those moments.

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There may not be a more polarising figure than Jack Wilshere. Not because of his character, although those who are not so favoured to smoking are a little less enamoured by his personality and commitment; not because of his talent, which is widely accepted among analysts, fans, and pundits; not because of his industry, his work-ethic and the importance with which he takes his role and responsibility; but because of his production.

Put simply, for a player of his natural ability, Wilshere has not produced as would have perhaps been expected of him, especially with his tremendous breakthrough year, after which Cesc Fabregas heralded him as the future of the Arsenal midfield and club. In his Gunners’ career, in the Premier League, Champions League and Europa League, Wilshere has scored 12 goals and assisted 20. That is not good enough. It has led to some rather unsavoury opinions regarding his career, his reputation, and his quality.

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Speaking after the disastrous 2-1 loss to FK Ostersunds, in which Wilshere was undoubtedly underwhelming, Roy Keane labelled Wilshere as ‘the most overrated player on the planet.’ Harsh, surely? Now, I am sure that Keane does not literally mean that Wilshere is the most overrated player on the planet. Exaggeration is at play here. But his overriding point still stands: there is a hysteria surrounding Wilshere that Keane feels he has not earned and does not deserve.

Without wanting to speak for Keane, I doubt that he believes Wilshere is not talented. There were few questioning his ability when he broke onto the scene, and much of his troubles since then can be attested to a series of debilitating, crippling injuries that have not only cost him opportunity but also the sharpness and cutting-edge that comes with consistent and regular playing time. But perhaps Keane is less convinced by his actual on-pitch impact, especially after such a poor performance.

I am not here to merely disagree with Keane. He is perfectly entitled to his opinion, and as Wenger himself said this week, it is difficult to argue anything other than your own assessment of him and allowing others to have theirs. But, in my opinion, I believe that Wilshere has all wrong. That is not to say that his career has lived up to the expectation. It hasn’t. But his qualities, and his potential, which is odd to write at 26 years of age, are not overrated.

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Whether Wilshere will ever live up to what he promised or not remains to be seen. He is running out of years. But, for now, all he can do is focus on the next game. It just so happens that that is a cup final against the best team in the country. What better way to prove yourself.